Naperville too pricey to some empty-nesters

When Karen Derylo and her husband, Bruce, were looking to downsize from their four-bedroom Napervillehome, they didn't even consider staying in their hometown of 25 years.

Even with a profit from selling their split-level, the retired couple knew they would not find an acceptable home in Naperville in their price range of about $200,000.

"I still absolutely love Naperville and would prefer being in Naperville," said Karen Derylo, who now lives in a three-bedroom, one-story town home at Cambridge at Carillon of Plainfield. "We didn't look that much in Naperville because we weren't aware of anything close to the size of what we have now [for the price]. We wanted to be able to close the door and walk away. No hard work, no shoveling snow."City Council member Sam Macrane, himself retired and an empty-nester, wants to bring moderately priced housing for seniors to Naperville, so couples like the Derylos don't have to leave.Macrane wants the city to encourage development of some senior housing in Sector G, the last 1,400 acres of undeveloped space in the southwestern region of the city.

"Over the last 10 years, there wasn't enough emphasis put on seniors," Macrane said. "Now, we have the Baby Boomers coming up. They're now 55 years old, and they're looking at retirement. And they also want to stay around and stay in Naperville. So there is a strong market for that."

Indeed, a survey published in June from the city's Planning Department found that of the respondents, about 40 percent believe there is a lack of affordable housing for seniors in the city. In addition, 60 percent of those responding believe the city should take an active role to bring senior housing to Naperville.

Senior housing is a critical issue statewide, according to the Illinois Department on Aging, which has said the growing senior citizen population will continue to face a shortage of appropriate housing options, including nursing home facilities.

But the "active older adult" population, generally understood to be 55 years or older, retired or about-to-be, also is looking for moderately priced, smaller homes with small yards requiring little maintenance. While the definition of "active adult" housing varies, Macrane wants to see units in the range of $200,000 to $225,000, with amenities such as main-floor bedrooms and community centers.

But moderately priced housing is often hard to come by in the western suburbs, where high land values push the price of houses through the roofs.

In Naperville, the median value of homes on the market this month was $413,000. Houses on the last open expanse in Naperville will likely be expensive because of the premium price for dwindling land.

For instance, Macom Corp. in Naperville wants to build luxury senior homes in Tamarack South costing between $350,000 to $550,000. Paul Lehman, Macom's president, was skeptical that a developer could build units worth just $200,000.

"That is going to take greater density to be able to do that," Lehman said. "Or it's going to take subsidies by the city."

But Doug Krause, a City Council member and real estate broker, said he does not believe the market will bring lower-priced homes to Naperville, and he is not sure that higher densities will be approved by the council.

But council member John Rosanova, a former plan commissioner who lives in Sector G, is willing to support higher density for senior housing to reduce the price of houses.

"We all can't live in $400,000 homes," he said. "For a community to be really balanced and well-rounded, you have to have a diversified mix of housing for your people."

In addition, communities also can enlist the help of state programs for tax credits and other financing mechanisms to decrease the price of property for senior citizens, said Jean Elliott, director of housing and assisted living for Life Services Network, a Hinsdale-based trade association for the elder care industry.

Such efforts are very time-consuming for developers, who would rather build larger, more luxurious homes for a greater profit, Elliott said.

"But I think they [Naperville officials] certainly need to consider these programs, if that's the product they want to bring into their community," Elliott said.

Even so, units of $200,000 each won't help all the seniors in town, said Ginnie Boyle, senior coordinator for Naperville Township.

Boyle said she receives a few calls a week from people looking for affordable housing, which she defines as under $1,000 a month in rent or a housing value of under $100,000.

According to the senior housing survey done by the city, 4.9 percent of the respondents over age 55 -- or about 800 people - are at or below the poverty level. Boyle said the township has just 343 subsidized units, which is not enough.

"Let's look at the senior who has a house, but it's a small house. It's not going to bring in a tremendous amount of money," she said. "They're having a hard time maintaining the outside. They're looking for something more affordable. And that's not here."